As I show below, typical alien depictions include an elongated, pale face, two dark elliptical eyes, and a small mouth. Who first used this design for an alien? Where does this design come from?
Answer
Arguably it all started with the Outer Limits episode "The Berrello Shield" from october 1964.
According to wikipedia, the grey aliens, also known as "Zeta Reticulans" rose to fame following the alleged abduction of Barney and Betty Hill in New Hampshire in 1961. The couple underwent hypnosis in 1964 to retrieve memories of the abduction and it was from these sessions that the following sketches were produced:
The topmost sketch is Barney's own, while the lower two were performed by David Baker based on Barney's description. In 1990, abduction-debunker Martin Kottmeyer remarked on the resemblance between the alien described in the 1964 hypnosis session and the alien in the Outer Limits episode that had aired two weeks before the session:
The Barney and Betty Hill abduction received great publicity and is acknowledged as the start of the grey alien trope, but it was probably this character from a TV show that was the original inspiration.
We can see how artists, from the very first second-hand sketch, have made free associations from the descriptions, bringing in their own visual memories. The David Baker sketches for instance, lack the completely black eyes, thin body and oversized heads that later foetus-inspired artists would use. Note that not even the abductee himself drew eyes like that! The artist David Baker instead seems to lean toward the face of a burn-victim.
Lasse Gustavsson, former firefighter and present motivational speaker, is probably fine with illustrating "face of burn-victim". Note how the nose resembles just two slits, like in the modern grey alien.
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